Container



Patented sept. 1o, 1946 CONTAINER Benjamin M. Williams, St. Louis, Mo., assgnor to Gaylord Container Corporation, St. Louis, Mo.,

a corporation of Maryland Application October 16, 1944, Serial No. 558,867

This invention relates to containers, particularly fruit and vegetable shipping cartons of the kind having a body with hand holes and a slip cover with locking tongues that are bent inwardly through said hand holes and thence upwardly around the upper edges thereof between two plies of said body. The principal objects of the present invention are to provide for quickly and easily inserting the cover locking tongues between and withdrawing 4them from the two plies of the body; to provide xed and permanent closures back of the hand holes to protect the fruit from light and from injury when the ngers are inserted in said hand holes in handling the carton and in locking and unlocking said cover locking tongues; to provide for increasing the space and purchase area for the fingers along the bent portions of the locked cover tongues; and to obtain other advantages hereinafter appearing. The invention consists in the carton and in the construction, combinations and arrangements of parts hereinafter described and claimed.

In the accompanying drawings, which form part of this specication and wherein like symbols refer to like parts wherever they occur,

Fig. 1 is an end view of a carton embodying my invention,

v Fig. 2 is a side elevational view of said carton,

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary perspective view of the slip cover of the carton,

Fig. 4 is a vertical cross-sectional view through Athe slip cover on the line 4-4 in Fig. 3,

Fig. 5 is a perspective view of the body of the carton,

Fig. 6 is a perspective view, showing the body of the carton in the process of erection,

Fig. 7 is an enlarged vertical cross-sectional view through one end of the body of the carton on the line 'l-T in Fig. 5,

Fig. 8 is an enlarged vertical cross-section through one end of the carton on the line 8-8 in Fig. 1; and

Fig. 9 is an enlarged fragmentary horizontal sectional view on the line 9-9 in Fig. 5`

In the accompanying drawings, my invention is shown embodied in a fruit or vegetable shipping carton comprising a body A and a slip cover B therefor, both made of corrugated board, fiberboard or other bendable material. The'body A preferably comprises a bottom wall or rpanel I, with outwardly tapering end ilaps 2 that terminate in locking tongues or tabs 3 and side walls or panels 4 with end flaps 5 and 5a, respectively, that are overlapped to,V form two-ply end walls.

6 Claims. (Cl. 229-45) Each of the outermost end naps 5 has a rectangular hand hole 6 therein with naps 1 along its vertical side edges that are bent to lie between the overlapped end flaps 5 and 5a and thus space them apart. As shown in the drawings, the side ilaps 1 of each hand hole 6 terminate short of the lower edge thereof and the portion of the hand hole below said side flaps is notched, as at 8, to increase the width of said portion to that of the locking tongue 3 of the adjacent end flap 2 of the body A.

Each of the innermost end naps 5a has a horizontally elongated slot 9 therein which registers with the notched lower portion 8 only of the hand hole 6 in the outermost end flap 5; that is, the horizontal slot 9 is of a length cor- -responding to the length of the notched lower portion of the hand hole 5 and is disposed with its lower edge flush with the lower edge of said hand hole and with its upper edge flush with the upper edges of the notchesr. The overlapped end aps 5 and 5a are also provided withA registering rectangular openings I0 and Ina, respectively, of a length corresponding substantially to the width of the locking tongues 3 of the end aps 2 of the body A. As shown in the drawings, the registering openings I Il and Illa are disposed with their upper edges in substantial flush alinement; but the openings Illa in the innermost end flap 5a is of less depth than the opening l0 in the outermost end ap 5, whereby said innermost end nap covers or masks the lower half of the opening I0 in said outermost end flap.

The body A is set up or erected by folding the side walls 4 upwardly into vertical position and by folding the end flaps 5 over the end flaps 5a, with the side flaps 1 of the hand holes 6 in the outermost end flaps 5 folded against the inner faces thereof. The overlapped end flaps 5 and 5a are `then secured together by bending the end flaps 2 upwardly alongside the outermost end flaps 5 over the openings l0 therein and then pushing the locking tongues 3 at the free ends of said end flaps through the notched lower portions 8 of the hand holes 6 in said outermost end flaps and through the slots 9 in the innermost end flaps 5a. The locking tongues 3 are then bent downwardly inside the body A alongside the `innermost end Iiaps 5a, after which the end portions of said locking tongues are pushed through the openings Illa in the innermost end llap into the upwardly opening retaining pockets H formed in the openings I0 below the level of the bottom edges of the openings Ina. As shown in the drawings, the locking tongues 3 are scored transversely, as at I2, so that they may be readily bent and directed through and around the notched lower portions 8 of the hand holes 6 and tucked into the pockets Il.

The slip cover B preferably comprises a top wall or panel I3 having ,end flaps I4 and side Wall panels I with end flaps I5. At each end of the cover, the two end flaps IE are bent into endwise abutting relation and the end flap I4 is bent downwardly along the outer faces of the two end flaps I6 and thence upwardly around the lower edges thereof and alongside the inner faces thereof into edgewise abutting relation to the top panel I3. Each of the folded end flaps I has two vertical slits Il cut therein that extend from the outer fold of said ap to a point adjacent to the upper edge of the inner fold thereof where they are connected by a cross slit I'Ia to provide a locking tongue I8 which may be bent downwardly and outwardly into Vertical alinement with said outer fold. As shown in the drawings, each of the locking tongues I8 has two vertical slits I9 cut therein that are connected along the line of connection of said tongue with the folded end flap I4 by a cross slit ISCL so as to provide a pull tab 2l! for said tongue.

After the body A is packed with fruit, the cover B is slipped over said body with the locking tongues I8 of the cover extending downwardly therefrom across the hand holes 6. The locking tongues I3 are then bent inwardly by the fingers into the hand holes 6 and slip upwardly along the innermost end closure flaps 5a and bent around the lower edges of the abutting end flaps I5 of the cover and the inner fold of the folded end flaps I4 thereof and the upper edges of said hand holes and then inserted upwardly into the clear spaces or pockets 2l provided therefor between the overlapped end aps 5 and 5a by the double back side edge tabs 'I of said hand holes, this tucking operation being facilitated by prescoring the locking tongues transversely along score lines 22. When it is desired to open the carton for inspection or removal of the contents thereof, the exposed free outer ends of the pnll tabs 2E! of the tucked in locking tongues I8 are grasped by the fingers and pulled downwardly and outwardly,

thereby pulling said tongues from their tucked in position in the spaces 2! between the inner and outer plies of the end walls of the body and thence outwardly through the hand holes 6 in the outer plies thereof, thereby permitting the cover to be removed from the body.

The body A and cover B may be vshipped in knockdown form and readily erected for service, the registering openings Ii! and lila in the twoply end walls of the body are concealed by the end iiaps 2 thereof; and the overlapped end wall flaps 5 and 5a are securely held together by the locking tongues 3, which are bent around the lower edges of the hand holes 6 in the outermost end wall flaps 5 and are tucked in the pockets 2l.V The end flaps 2 are held down on the bottom edges of the hand holes 6 by the notches 8 in the lower corners thereof and by the upper edges of the ap receiving slots 9 in the innermost end flap 5a of the body. The hand holes 6 in the outermost end flaps 5 are covered by the innermost end flaps 5a, which form fixed and permanent closures back of said hand holes to protect the fruit from light and from injury when the fingers are inserted in the hand holes to handle the carton and to lock and unlock the cover. The portions of the cover locking tongues I8 that extend beneath the end walls of the cover and the upper edges of the hand holes 6 provide wide flat gripping areas for the fingers; and the doubled back side edge tabs 'I of said hand holes provide clear spaces thereabove which permit said locking tongues to be quickly tucked between the overlapped end flaps 5 and 5a and withdrawn therefrom.

Obviously, the hereinbefore described carton construction admits of considerable modification without departing from the invention. Therefore, I do not wish to be limited to the precise construction shown and described.

What I claim is:

l. A carton comprising a body having aps that are overlapped and secured together to form end walls, said end walls having hand holes in the outermost flaps thereof, means for spacing the overlapped flaps of the end walls apart to provide clear spaces therebetween above said hand holes, and a cover having locking tongues depending therefrom that are bent upwardly around the upper edges of said hand holes and are inserted into the clear spaces located thereabove between said overlapped flaps, said spacing means comprising tabs located along the edges of said hand holes and bent to lie between said overlapped iiaps.

2. A carton comprising a body having side panels with end aps that are overlapped and secured together to form end walls, said end walls having hand holes in the outermost flaps only thereof, means for spacing the overlapped flaps of the end walls apart to provide clear spaces therebetween above the hand holes in the outermost flaps, and a cover having locking tongues depending therefrom that are bent upwardly around the upper edges of the hand holes and into the clear spaces between said overlapped fiaps, said means comprising tabs located along the edges of said hand holes and bent to lie between said overlapped aps.

3. A carton comprising a body having side panels with flaps that are overlapped and secured together to form end walls, said end walls having hand holes in the outermost flaps only thereof, means for spacing said overlapped end wall flaps apart to provide clear spaces therebetween above the hand holes in the outermost flaps, and a cover having locking tongues depending therefrom that are bent upwardly around the upper edges of the hand holes in the outermost aps and are inserted into the clear spaces between the overlapped flaps, said means comprising aps along the side edges of said hand holes that are bent to lie between said overlapped flaps.

4i. A carton comprising a body having side panels with flaps that are overlapped and secured together to form two-ply end walls, the outermost flaps only having hand holes therethrough and the innermost aps constituting permanent rigid closures for said hand holes, the outermost end flaps of said end walls having tabs along the edges of the hand holes therein that are bent to lie between the overlapped flaps to provide clearn spaces therebetween above said hand holes, and a cover having locking tongues depending therefrom that are bent upwardly around the upper edges of said hand holes and into the clear spaces between said overlapped aps above said hand holes.

5. A carton comprising a body having side panels with end flaps that are overlapped to form end walls, said end walls having hand holes in the outermost flaps only thereof, whereby the innermost aps constitute permanent rigid closures back of said hand holes, and a cover having threeply end walls and locking tongues depending from the outermost plies thereof, said locking tongues being bent inwardly beneath the two remaining plies of said end walls of said cover and the upper edges of said hand holes to provide relatively wide hat purchase areas for the ngers and thence upwardly between said overlapped aps, said outermost flaps having tabs along the vertical side edges of the hand holes therein thatr are bent to lie between said overlapped aps and provide clear spaces therebetween for the upwardly bent portions of said'locking tongues.

6. A carton comprising a body having side panels with end aps that are overlapped to form end walls, said end walls having hand holes in the outermost aps only thereof, whereby the innermost flaps constitute permanent rigid closures back of said handy holes, and a cover having three-ply end walls and locking tongues depend- 'ing from the outermost plies thereof, said locking tongues being bent inwardly beneath the two remaining plies of said end walls of said cover and the upper edges of said hand holes to provide relatively wide flat purchase areas for the ngers and thence upwardly between said overlapped y flaps, said outermost flaps having tabs along the vertical side edges of the hand holes therein that y 

